Molina Sparks Cards To Win Over Cubs, ML Roundup

(Chicago, IL) -- Yadier Molina's three-run homer capped a four-run ninth inning as the Cardinals beat the Cubs 10-6 at Wrigley Field. Molina went 4-for-6 and drove in four with three runs for St. Louis, which has won seven out of nine. Allen Craig was 4-for-5 and had the go-ahead RBI single prior to Molina's blast in the ninth. Pete Kozma was 3-for-6 and knocked in two while Edward Mujica pitched the final inning-and-a-third for the win. Darwin Barney went 3-for-4 with a three-run homer and four RBI for Chicago, which has lost three out of five. Cody Ransom tied the game with a pinch-hit two-run double in the eighth.  Kevin Gregg was tagged for all four late runs to suffer the loss.

 

Phils Walk-Off On ChiSox

(Philadelphia, PA) -- John Mayberry Jr. singled in the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Phillies a 4-3 win over the White Sox in Philadelphia. Domonic Brown knocked in two runs with a double in the first for Philadelphia, which is 6 1/2 games back of Atlanta in the NL East at 48-48. Cole Hamels struck out seven in eight innings of two-run ball in a no decision. He also added an RBI single. Antonio Bastardo picked up the win.  David Purcey suffered the loss. Alejandro De Aza smacked a solo shot for Chicago, which is 14 games back of Detroit in the AL Central at 37-55.

 

Nationals Knock Off Marlins

(Miami, FL) -- Denard Span doubled in the go-ahead run during the top of the 10th inning as the Nationals held off the Marlins 5-2 in Miami. Span also doubled in a run in the second inning for Washington, which ends its first half at 48-47 and is six games back of Atlanta in the NL East. Craig Stammen picked up the win while Rafael Soriano locked up his 25th save. Derek Dietrich smoked a two-run homer for Miami, which is an NL worse 35-58. Steve Cishek suffered the loss in relief.

 

Reds Double Up Braves

(Atlanta, GA) -- Jay Bruce blasted a two-run homer to power the Reds by the Braves 8-4 in Atlanta. Shin-Soo Choo also went deep for Cincinnati, which trails St. Louis by five games in the NL Central.  Brandon Phillips knocked in three runs in the win. Logan Ondrusek earned the victory in relief. Julio Teheran gave up five runs in 5 1/3 innings to fall to 7-5. Dan Uggla and Andrelton Simmons both hit a solo shot for Atlanta, which is in first place in the NL East, six games up on Washington.

 

Mets Double Up Pirates To Avoid Sweep

(Pittsburgh, PA) -- John Buck's two-run single highlighted a three-run first inning as the Mets doubled up the Pirates 4-2 to avoid a three-game sweep at PNC Park. Marlon Byrd doubled in a run and Daniel Murphy had an RBI-triple for the Mets, who have won five-of-seven to enter the All-Star break at 41-50. Dillon Gee gave up just an unearned run on five hits over 6 2/3 innings as he evened his record at 7-7. Bobby Parnell closed it out for his 17th save. Starling Marte and Jose Tabata plated a run each for the Bucs, who had won their previous three.  Gerrit Cole allowed three runs in five frames as he slipped to 4-3 with his third straight loss.  Pittsburgh enters the break 56-37.

 

Padres Pound Giants To Avoid Sweep

(San Diego, CA) -- Carlos Quentin belted a two-run homer and knocked in three as the Padres pounded the Giants 10-1 to avoid a four-game sweep at Petco Park. Nick Hundley and Will Venable hit back-to-back solo homers, while Chris Denorfia also went deep for the Friars, who won for just the second time in 16 games. The Padres sit at the bottom of the NL West at 42-54. Eric Stults tossed six innings of one-run ball to up his mark to 8-7. Marco Scutaro singled in the lone run in the first inning for San Francisco, which had lost four straight heading into this series. The Giants are 43-51 and in fourth place in the NL West. Barry Zito allowed four runs in just two-plus frames as he fell to 4-7.

 

Rockies Rip Dodgers

(Los Angeles, CA) -- Michael Cuddyer lifted a two-run homer to help the Rockies roll the Dodgers 3-1 in Los Angeles. Cuddyer was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Jhoulys Chacin was 2-for-2 with a walk at the plate. He tossed six innings of one-run ball with six strikeouts for his ninth win. Rafael Betancourt picked up his 15th save for Colorado, which split the four-game series to finish the first half at 46-50. Ricky Nolasco allowed three runs in five innings for the loss. Adrian Gonzalez drove in the lone run for L.A., which is 47-47.

 

Brewers Down D'backs To Avoid Sweep

(Phoenix, AZ) -- Logan Shafer homered and drove in two as the Brewers downed the Diamondbacks 5-1 to avoid a four-game sweep at Chase Field. Carlos Gomez had a two-run single during a three-run first inning and fellow All-Star Jean Segura finished 3-for-3 with a walk and a run scored for Milwaukee, which snapped a four-game skid. The Brewers enter the All-Star break at the bottom of the NL Central at 38-56. Wily Peralta struck out eight over seven innings of one-run ball as he improved to 7-and-9. Miguel Montero homered for the second straight game for the D'backs, who enter the break atop the NL West at 50-and-45.  They lead the Dodgers by a 2 1/2 games. Ian Kennedy allowed all five runs in 6 1/3 frames as he slipped to 3-6.

 

Indians Sweep Royals

(Cleveland, OH) -- Asdrubal Cabrera and Jason Kipnis drove in two runs apiece as the Indians completed a three-game sweep of the Royals with a 6-4 win at Progressive Field. Carlos Santana went 3-for-3 with an RBI for the Tribe, which has won four in-a-row to finish the first half of the season in second place in the AL Central at 51-44. Rich Hill picked up his first win since May 26 of last year. Chris Perez closed it out for his 13th save. Alcides Escobar drove in two runs and Alex Gordon had two hits and an RBI for KC, which lost five in-a-row to enter the All-Star break 43-49. The Royals are in third place in the division, eight games behind the Tigers. Tim Collins took the loss in relief.

 

Twins Top Yankees In Rubber Match

(Bronx, NY) -- Aaron Hicks smacked a three-run homer as the Twins topped the Yankees 10-4 in the rubber match of a weekend series in the Bronx. Justin Morneau went 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, while Brian Dozier, Jamey Carroll and Pedro Florimon also plated a run and scored a run each for Minnesota, which sits in fourth place in the AL Central at 39-and-53 heading into the All-Star break. Kyle Gibson gave up three runs, two earned, in five-plus innings as he evened his record at 2-2. Ichiro Suzuki went 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI for the Yankees, who are fourth in the AL East at 51-44. CC Sabathia was rocked for eight runs, three earned, in four frames as he fell to 9-8 with the loss.

 

Verlander Flirts With No-Hitter As Tigers Blank Rangers

(Detroit, MI) -- Justin Verlander took a no-hitter into the seventh inning as the Tigers went on to blank the Rangers 5-0 in the rubber match of a three-game series at Comerica Park. Mitch Moreland doubled with two outs in the seventh to break up Verlander's no-hit bid. Verlander ended up allowing just the one hit and three walks as he improved to 10-6 with the victory. He left, however, after seven frames with a tight right quad muscle.  Torii Hunter homered in the first and Victor Martinez and Jhonny Peralta hit back-to-back solo shots in the fourth for the Tigers, who enter the All-Star break atop the AL Central at 52-42. Martin Perez allowed all five runs in less than six innings as he fell to 3-2. Texas is second in the AL West at 54-41.

 

Rays Blank Astros In Rubber Match

(St. Petersburg, FL) -- Chris Archer tossed his first career complete game shutout as the Rays blanked the Astros 5-0 in the rubber match of a three-game series at Tropicana Field.  Archer struck out eight while giving up just five hits and no walks as he upped his mark to 4-3. Desmond Jennings clubbed a two-run homer for the Rays, who have won 10-of-11 to enter the All-Star break in second place in the AL East at 55-41. Erik Bedard allowed three runs, two earned, in five frames as he fell to 3-6. Houston has lost five-of-six and enter the break with the worst record in the majors at 33-61.

 

A's Edge Red Sox In 11 Innings

(Oakland, CA) -- Josh Donaldson singled in the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning as the Athletics edged the Red Sox 3-2 in the rubber match of a three-game series in Oakland. Donaldson hit a game-tying two-run homer in the seventh for the A's, who enter the All-Star break atop the AL West at 56-39. Texas is two games back. Ryan Cook picked up the win with two scoreless innings in relief. Dustin Pedroia and Brock Holt plated a run each for Boston, which went 58-and-39 in the first half and holds a two-and-a-half game lead over Tampa Bay for the top spot in the AL East. Matt Thornton fell to 0-4 with the loss.

 

Mariners Sink Angels

(Seattle, WA) -- Michael Saunders lifted a two-run homer to pace the Mariners past the Angels 4-3 in Seattle.  Raul Ibanez and Mike Zunino also knocked in a run for Seattle, which swept the three-game series to move to 43-52. Hisashi Iwakuma allowed three runs but struck out seven in as many innings for the win. Tom Wilhelmsen picked up his 19th save. Joe Blanton allowed four runs in four-plus frames for the loss. Mark Trumbo hit his 21st home run for Los Angeles, which has lost four-of-five to slip to 44-49.

 

Orioles Down Blue Jays

(Baltimore, MD) -- One step forward, two steps back. That seems to be the way it's gone for the Blue Jays before the All-Star Break this season, and the final weekend series before the Midsummer Classic was no exception. Sure, the team got Brett Lawrie back as a second baseman and won Saturday's game in his return from a six-week absence with a high ankle sprain. But a 7-4 loss Sunday to the Orioles at Camden Yards, coupled with Friday's slug-it-out loss, meant the Jays dropped another series and precious ground in the American League East before the four-day All-Star break.

 

MLB's First Half Comes To A Close
(Flushing, NY) -- The first half of the Major League Baseball season is history.  The focus now shifts to Flushing, New York and Citi Field, the home of the New York Mets. The venue will host the Home Run Derby tonight before the 84th All-Star Game takes place Tuesday night. The action in New York started over the weekend with a series of concerts and Sunday's Futures Game, which was won by the U.S. over the World team, 4-2.

 

Sluggers Swing For Fences At Home Run Derby

(Flushing, NY) -- Baseball's best sluggers will be swinging for Citi Field's fences during tonight's Home Run Derby from Flushing, New York. Baltimore Orioles first baseman Chris Davis highlights an American League squad selected by New York Yankees second baseman and Derby captain Robinson Cano. Davis says the Home Run Derby has always been a special event to him.

Davis leads all of baseball with 37 home runs, tying Reggie Jackson's AL mark for round-trippers before the All-Star break. Former Derby champion and Detroit Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder will also swing it for the junior circuit as will Oakland Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. The National League team was picked by New York Mets third baseman David Wright. He will be joined by Colorado Rockies outfielder Michael Cuddyer, Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper and Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez.

 

Sunday, July 14 Scoreboard

MLB NL

Washington Nationals 5, Miami Marlins 2 (10 inn)

Cincinnati Reds 8, Atlanta Braves 4

New York Mets 4, Pittsburgh Pirates 2

San Diego Padres 10, San Francisco Giants 1

Colorado Rockies 3, Los Angeles Dodgers 1

Milwaukee Brewers 5, Arizona Diamondbacks 1

St. Louis Cardinals 10, Chicago Cubs 6

 

MLB AL

Cleveland Indians 6, Kansas City Royals 4

Minnesota Twins 10, New York Yankees 4

Detroit Tigers 5, Texas Rangers 0

Baltimore Orioles 7, Toronto Blue Jays 4

Tampa Bay Rays 5, Houston Astros 0

Oakland Athletics 3, Boston Red Sox 2 (11 inn)

Seattle Mariners 4, Los Angeles Angels 3

 

MLB Interleague

Philadelphia Phillies 4, Chicago White Sox 3 (10 inn)

 

Monday, July 15 Schedule (Times Central)

MLB

7:00 p.m. - Home Run Derby (at Flushing, NY)